Skaia High
by disorderlyCalligraphist
Summary: Follow Karkat (along with the other Homestuck characters) as he tries to make his way through highschool. Rated T for KK's potty mouth. Human!stuck AU
1. Chapter 1

Follow the characters of Homestuck (mostly Karkat) as they go through the treacheries of Highschool!

~FRESHMAN YEAR~

You stand in an empty school hallway, staring at your schedule. The name at the top reads "KARKAT VANTAS". Of course it does! That's _your _name after all! You are currently waiting to be handed your school I.D. badge. This is going to be your first year in high school, and you aren't as eager as most freshmen would be. Why would you be anyways? All throughout middle school you were picked on and you don't think high school is going to be any better. Not to mention you just moved here so you don't even have any friends. Hm. Now that you think about it, now would be a good time to try and start fresh!

The woman at the front desk finally handed you your I.D. badge that stated your name, school, graduating class and openly displayed a picture of you grimacing. You examined it. A permanent scowl frozen on your alabaster face, your dark red, almost burgundy, eyes forever glaring, and tousled black hair falling over your forehead. A sigh escaped your lips as you put the lanyard around your neck. It's official, you are now a prisoner, uh student, of Skaia High. Home of the Kernel sprites. What even is a Kernel sprite?

Regardless, you thanked the woman and walked through the halls of Skaia, plotting the best routes to take when the bell rang. After determining the easiest ways through the large school you headed to the cafeteria to wait awkwardly until the day began. Unlike the empty halls, the cafeteria had a few students milling about. You sat at a long, rectangular table in the middle of the room and rested your head on your arm. Jeez, you were so tired. Granted you were an insomniac and you're _always_ tired, but usually you get a _few_ hours of sleep, last night however you didn't sleep a wink.

It only took a few minutes for the quiet room to grow loud and rambunctious, filled with teenagers. You peeked up from your arm pillow to see groups among groups of people finding their friends and reuniting for the first time since summer. Some kids were staring at you, and whenever you looked at them they would quickly avert their gazes. Man you really hated that. _'If you want to stare then stare, don't wimp put if I look at you.' _You thought. However, you did the exact same thing when you spotted a tall blonde boy. You normally wouldn't stare, but this guy…was different. He was wearing clown makeup. When he looked back you turned your head as fast as you could without snapping your puny neck, but from that split second glance you also noticed that his eyes were droopy and bloodshot.

'_Well great. I'm now enrolled in a school where its normal to wear clown makeup and be high off your ass.' _Well! At least this'll be interesting for you!

**OKAY. So i worked up the nerve to post my little AU.  
**

**Yeah it's short sorry guys...**

Please R&R. But be nice :U

Homestuck belongs to Hussie.


	2. Chapter 2

And he did just that. After class Karkat made his way to his locker. There were a few kids leaning on it but they politely dispersed after he made it clear that he was heading their way. It took Karkat a good five tries to open the damn thing, and when he did, it was too small to fit the book in comfortably! The now angered boy had to maneuver it awkwardly be able to slam the door to his locker shut. The sound of the door slamming, caused the girl next to him to squeak in shock.

"Well jeez what did that locker ever do to you?" he heard her say.  
"It was too fucking small." Karkat's response was bitter. Why was she even worried about it?

He turned to her and the first thing he noticed were the pointy red glasses on her freckled face. Her red-orange hair was the next thing that caught his attention.

"Are you new to this school?" She asked. Her face was angled down a bit for some odd reason.

"Yeah I just moved here. I'm a freshman."

"Ah, I'm a freshman too! The names Terezi." She offered her hand.  
"Karkat." He took her hand in a friendly handshake.

"It's nice to meet you Karkat. Anyways, we should get going, bell's about to ring."  
"Shit, you're right!"

The two both said a quick goodbye and sped off to their next class. For Karkat it would be ceramics, a class he never signed up for but they put him in it anyways, to accommodate the other overflowing classes. Nothing notable happened in that class. In fact the rest of his classes were boring and redundant. Every now and then he would run into that girl and he went out of his way just to greet her.

At least he made a friend today.

It was finally time to return home. Karkat waited in the back of the bus for the rest of the students to pile in. The bus physically tilted underneath the wait of its newest passenger. A tall, strong looking boy entered the bus and walked right up to the seat Karkat was in. He does nothing for a while, only leaning against the seat, watching the smaller of the two. Finally his deep voice bellowed, "Outta my seat Freshie."

Oh no. Karkat wasn't having this. "I don't see your name on it." The tiny, pale boy protested.

"I don't think you understand fresh meat, get your ass out of my seat before I throw you out of it."

"I will not move." God, Karkat was Rosa Parks-ing him sooo hard right now.

Instead of continuing the argument he simply grabbed the smaller boy by the collar, lifted him out of the seat and dropped him into the aisle. Well then…

The entire bus erupted into mocking laughter at his embarrassment. _'Great,' _he thought,_ 'now I'm a laughing stock. Yet again.'_

Finally home, Karkat plopped down on the couch and put up his feet. Since his dad was never home and his brother had already moved out the house was his to rule over. The rest of the boy's day was spent reflecting on the first day in his new school. In all honesty, the only possible good thing that came out of this day was meeting that one ginger girl. _'Ah fuck, what was her name again?'_

**Okay so there. New character :D**_  
_

**I'm sorry the chapters are gonna be short i guess. they might get longer over time but yeah... :T  
**R&R please!  
Homestuck belongs to Overlord Hussie.


	3. Chapter 3

It had only been about two hours since he fell asleep, and Karkat's pesky alarm disrupted his rare slumber. It was time again for him to get ready for school. As he got ready, Karkat revisited his first few weeks at the new school and they weren't too bad.

The harassment only occurred on the bus and it was actually kind of harmless. Sure it was annoying but all the guy ever did was push Karkat's head slightly as he walked by and him "fresh meat". Plus, Karkat had managed to make a few friends, well really only three. Aside from Terezi, he met a boy named John Egbert, a total nerd and a connoisseur of movies. Correction, a connoisseur of _bad _movies. They met in science class when the teacher paired the two up for a lab. John wouldn't stop babbling about how much he loved Nic Cage. Somehow, Karkat cursing him out caused the two to bond in the office.

Then there was Dave Strider. He met this cool kid through John. Dave was as cool and ironic as one could hope to get, the maker of online comics you've never heard of, and incredibly charming in his own stoic way. In Karkat's mind, he could care less for the blonde, but John and Terezi seemed to like him.

After his little reflection session, Karkat turned on his TV to see the weather report for that day. The over joyous weatherman reported that the sun was going to be showing all day today…delightful. The weather dictated what Karkat would wear that day. If it was sunny, he would be forced to cover up in long sleeves or a hoody. If it rained or was simply cloudy, he was free to wear what he pleased.

Albinism was a bitch like that. Karkat's friends always questioned him on his clothing choices on nice days, but he never told them the truth. _'If I did they would probably think I'm a freak'_ he thought, _'everyone else did.'_ He hadn't told anyone about his albinism since elementary school, the kids were frightened by his red eyes and made fun of his white hair. It didn't stop there either. All throughout middle school he was bullied. That's actually the reason his father moved him to Skaia high.

Karkat threw on his jeans and his hoody, shaking his head free from his thoughts of the past. He proceeded to the bathroom to groom himself and he took a long look at his reflection. His candy red eyes inspected his hair and a growl came from his lips when he noticed his black hair was returning to its natural ivory state at the roots. Because of the contrast of black and white it was extremely noticeable. Karkat rummaged through the cabinets searching for hair dye but he came up empty handed. Well shit. Now he'd have to stay home and do it later. He sent a quick message to his friends to let them know he "caught something" and wouldn't be there today. _'Man today is going to be so boring…'_ Karkat wished he could be someone else right now.

-Be Terezi-

Terezi's phone vibrated, alerting her that she had an incoming message. She pulled out her phone and pressed the button on the side that made her phone read the message to her through her headphones. It turns out Karkat was sick and wouldn't be at school today. She responded into the microphone of her cellular and it typed out her 'G3T W3LL SOON', quirk and all. Technology sure is a blessing!

She turned back to John and Dave who had received the same message from the "sick" boy.

"Man, I hope Karkat gets better by tomorrow. We have a lab in science." John whined.

"I'm sure he will." Dave reassured his friend.

The bell rang throughout the school, starting another day of learning. Terezi lifted herself from her seat and extended her walking cane.

"Woah, where'd you get that sweet dragon cane Terezi?" John sounded surprised.

"John, I've had this all my life…"

"Wow really? Wait, why?" Terezi could practically _see_ John scratching his head!

"Dude," Dave scoffed, "Tz is blind." Oh! That's right, she had only told Dave.

"How come I've never seen you use that then?" John questioned.

"Because you and Karkat always rush off to class before I can even get up!" Terezi stated matter-of-factly.

John's response was a simple "yeah…". More and more students began leaving the cafeteria and dave had moved to terezi's side to walk her to her first block, which was English. Yes, English. With books and writing. She might be blind but that didn't mean she wanted special treatment! Terezi had her mother talk to the principle into letting her take normal classes and do her graded assignments online. The only thing she had to do in her classes was answer the questions she knew off the top of her head.


	4. Chapter 4

**So yup! pesterlog contained in this one :33 All characters belong to Andrew Hussie**

-Be Karkat-

The stenches of hair dye filled the bathroom. He was eager to leave the room but he had to be sure that his ivory roots were fully changed to ebony. Fortunately for him, his brother was willing to pick up some dye for him and deliver it to his residence. Unfortunately for him, this meant his brother had to come over. When he did he decided to spend some time there.

"You know Karkat; you shouldn't be ashamed or disgusted by your genetics. Honestly you should embrace it, see it as a blessing! The fact that you're trying to hide it so much is very offensive to us, us being a collective reference to others with albinism, and-"

"FOR THE LOVE OF GOD SHUT UP KANKRI!" Karkat shouted at his brother through the bathroom door. "Jeez."

Karkat threw open the door and stomped past him, "Besides Kankri, you went to a private school, you don't know what I had to go through."

"Karkat I assure you, I was subjected to the same kind torment as you." His brother argued.

"Yeah, when you came to get me from my school! It isn't the same!"

"That being said I fully understa-"

"No! No you don't! While you were over at fucking Prospit Academy having fun and being accepted I was being bullied! Like all kinds of bullying too! I had no friends and you were out living the good life! So don't tell me you understand Kankri, cause no one does!" Karkat was on the verge of tears but he kept it back.

His brother stood silent, watching the younger one with red eyes. After about a minute or two of just standing there watching him, Kankri finally spoke up, "Okay Karkat, I'm sorry to have triggered you. I just wish you'd accept yourself one day."

Karkat sighed, "Yeah well I don't see that happening anytime soon okay Kankri?" it was a question that wasn't meant to be answered. He felt kind of bad about going off on his brother like that, and he wished he could feel comfortable in his own pale skin like his brother. To _his _friends, the only flaw he had was that he talked to much, not his oddly colored hair or his bright red eyes, not even his weakness to sunlight against his skin. Karkat desperately wished he could be accepted like his older brother.

"So," Kankri started, breaking the awkward silence between them, "how is school for you brother?"

"It's fine…"

"Any new friends yet? How about any afterschool activities?"

"I've only got like, three friends, no afterschool activities and my classes are fine." Karkat responded quickly, hoping his brother wouldn't inquire any further.

"Hm, okay brother, I'll leave you be if that's what you want. I'm just letting you know now, I'll be back to check on you a lot more since dad is hardly ever here." Kankri walked over to the door, "I've got to work soon anyways, so I'll see you later."

And with that, his gab-happy brother left him alone in the empty apartment. Eventually Karkat ended up pestering John to find out what he had missed in his classes.

` carcinoGenetecist [CG] began pestering ectoBiologist [EB]

CG: JOHN.

CG: HEY JOHN.

CG: EGDERP.

EB: oh! hey karkat!

EB: what's up man?

CG: WHAT DID I MISS TODAY?

EB: not much really, we just worked on that study guide in history and we had a sub in English so we all just messed around.

CG: OKAY GOOD.

EB: so you feeling better now?

CG: YEAH A LOT BETTER.

EB: good I don't want to lose my lab partner tomorrow :B

CG: DON'T WORRY JOHN, I'LL BE THERE TOMORROW.

EB: okay cool. hey did you know Terezi is blind?

CG: YEAH OF COURSE. WAIT, YOU DIDN'T DID YOU

EB: well…no. how did you know?

CG: I SEE HER WITH THAT CANE ALL THE TIME. JUST KIND OF FIGURED IT OUT FROM THERE.

CG HOW DOES SHE HAVE NORMAL CLASSES THOUGH?

EB: oh her mom talked to the school principle or something so she wouldn't feel singled out. cool huh?

CG: YEAH THAT'S COOL I GUESS.

The two continued to talk until John had to go to bed. He might not admit it to anyone but himself but Karkat really enjoyed talking to John and he was glad they had become such good friends.

**SO I hope you guys liked it! feel free to review! c:**


	5. Chapter 5

**Okay wow sorry this took forever and a day... I might start updating more soon because i really wanna get this done.**

**Homestuck belongs to A. Hussie**

Chapter 5

It was about three in the morning when he woke up. Karkat tried desperately to get back to sleep but he couldn't, this didn't surprise him though. Instead he just laid in bed, wide awake and listening to the various noises of the house as it settled. He let his mind wander as he contemplated what the meanings of life and the universe were. He quickly abandoned those thoughts and moved on to simpler things, like his time in school so far. He had made some pretty good friends so far. Everything seemed fine, the bullying hadn't escalated too much and his grades where above average for once. Things were going well for the most part. 'Can the same be said for Terezi?' The tired boy thought. 'Oh and those other assholes too.' Karkat kept finding himself thinking about Terezi and how she was doing in school. 'Do kids make fun of her because she's blind? Do they even know she is? I never see her hanging out with anyone else does she have any other friends? Does she have a boyfriend?' Karkat's eyebrows furrowed as he rubbed his eyes, 'Shit, why did I think that? It doesn't even matter if she does it's not like I'm interested right?' He felt his face get warmer at the thought of her and covered his face with his cool pillow. 'Oh great.'

When Karkat got to school on Friday he was shocked to see that clown character sitting at his table. Karkat tried to avoid him and find a different seat but the juggalo managed to lock eyes with him as Karkat tried to steal a glance.

"Mornin' muthafucka'." He yawned.

"Uh, hi?" Karkat cautiously stepped towards the table. "Why are you sitting here?"

The clowns face fell a bit. "Well why not bro?"

"I don't know, you just… never sat here before…" Karkat put his books down on the table, his eyes never left the other boy's, "so why now?"

"Man I just all up an' wanted meet some new muthafuckas."

God what a mouth on this kid. Karkat could smell the cannabis on him too. "Jesus, I can smell pot all over you, I don't think I want you to be around me."

The other boys smile fell completely this time. "Aw c'mon man, it's for medicinal shit."

Karkat wasn't too sure he believed him but he decided to let him stay. "Okay fine you can stay for now."

The goofy grin was plastered back on the boy's face within seconds of finishing the sentence.

"So…uh…my name's Karkat."

"Cool beans."

. . .

"Dude, what's your name?"

"Ha-ha, Gamzee muthafucka. Gamzee Makara."

Well it seems as though Karkat has just made another odd friend.

The bell rang loud through the halls, signaling the temporary release of hungry teenagers for lunch. Karkat made his way to the lunch line and exited with a tray of less than appealing slop. He made a beeline to the courtyard. He almost made it outside but something had prevented his left foot from moving and had caused him to fall face first to the floor. He threw his tray up before he could land on it, instead he let his face hit the cold, dirty floor. He heard the other kids laughing. He got up and dusted himself off before looking towards the direction of the obstruction. Karkat was met with somewhat of a pleasant sight; the offender was covered in the food from his tray. It had gotten all over his nice looking shirt and boy was he furious.

Karkat prepared himself for a hasty escape but before he ran he couldn't pass up this perfect opportunity to piss him off a bit more.

"Karma's a bitch isn't it?" He grinned. But his grin showed his frightened disposition instead of his sass.

The other boy rushed towards Karkat with his fist clenched and before he had the chance to run away, the boy's fist collided with Karkat's cheek. Shouting came from all around and soon he was surrounded by tons of bored, frantic teens looking for entertainment. Karkat grabbed his cheek which stung to the touch. The other swung again, shouting all kinds of slurs and profanity and Karkat very narrowly dodged the attack.

Faculty finally broke up the fight and both of them were sent to the office. After very desperately explaining he did nothing wrong, Karkat was let off the hook with a warning and a call home to his father. Too bad he wasn't home to hear it. The nurse didn't do much to dress his wound considering it was just a slightly cut, now bruising cheek.

Karkat slipped into his science class unnoticed by most, but John was watching the door like a freaking hawk. After he handed his teacher a tardy Karkat sat down next to John who wouldn't stop questioning. "Whoa Karkat! What happened to your cheek?"

"It's nothing John." He tried to dismiss it.

"That's a load of bull! It is swollen and red. Did you get into a fight?"

"John-"

"Did you win? I bet you won, what was it over?"

"John."

"Was it over a girl?"

"John please."

"C'mon Karkat spill!"

"Christ John, you're such a fucking gossip girl!" Karkat covered his face with his hands. "I lost. Well no, actually no one won. It wasn't over a girl, he tripped me and my food got on him, he hit me and got suspended."

"Who was it?"

"I don't know, some ass who's been here for seven years probably?"

"Oh! Was it-"

"Mr. Egbert, Mr. Vantas! Do I need to separate you two?" The teacher interrupted John's question and glared at the two boys. They quietly said no and got back to work.

The bus ride home was torture for Karkat. The normal taunting and teasing had increased to a bit more violent bullying since the kid in the lunch room was apparently a good friend of the jerk who usually antagonized him. The driver limited the bully's actions but he wasn't safe when he got off the bus. He was pushed around, called names, and had his backpack used as a hacky sack, but he managed to make it home with no physical marks.

Karkat had hoped for a nice quiet night, and to forget about his altercations throughout the day, but he came home to a furiously blinking computer. 'And here we go…'

**Hope you guys enjoyed it! :33**


	6. Chapter 6

**homestuck belongs to hussie~ **

Gallows Calibrator [GC] began pestering Carcino Geneticist [CG]

GC: K4RK4T V4NT4S! :O

GC: 4NSW3R M3 NOW!

CG: OH MY GOD WHAT

GC: F1N4LLY!

GC: WH4T'S TH1S 1 H34R 4BOUT YOU G3TTING 1N 4 F1GHT?

CG: FUCKING JOHN GOD DAMMIT! IT WAS NOTHING OKAY

GC: PL34S3 K4RK4T T3LL M3.

CG: JUST ASK JOHN.

GC: BUT 1 W4NN4 H34R 1T FROM YOU NOT H1M.

CG: FINE.

CG: THIS ASSHOLE TRIPPED ME IN THE CAFETERIA AND MY LUNCH GOT ON HIM.

CG: I MADE A SNARKY REMARK, HE GOT PISSED, AND THEN HE PUNCHED ME. IT WAS BROKEN UP IN A MATTER OF SECONDS, NO BIG DEAL.

GC: 1T 1S4 B1G D34L! H3 H1T YOU 4ND H3 SHOULD B3 PROS3CUT3D!

CG: WHAT THE FUCK…UH, OKAY…

GC: H3 N33DS TO B3 PUN1SH3D K4RK4T.

CG: OH WELL HE WAS. HE GOT SUSPENDED.

GC: GOOD. 1F YOU H4V3 4NY OTH3R PROBL3MS L3T M3 KNOW OK4Y?

CG: YEAH SURE WHATEVER. NOW GOODBYE. I NEED A NAP.

Carcino Geneticist [CG] ceased pestering Gallows Calibrator [GC]

The nest two weeks going to be hell for Karkat.

**-Follow Gamzee-**

Gamzee was relaxed in his usual seat; across from Karkat's, at the head of the table, but Karkat wasn't here yet. He was running late. Again. The others at the table were buzzing and speculating about him.

"He can't be absent again," whined John, "he's already been out like five days in the past two weeks!"

"Well he hasn't pestered any of us to say he wouldn't be here," Terezi reassured him, "so just wait."

"Yeah the guy's probably just-." Whatever witty comment Dave was about to make was cut short by the careless tossing of books onto the table. Karkat quickly slouched into his seat and concealed his face with his arms. The whole table was quiet as they watched him. His breathing was off, broken. Gamzee figured no one else was going to speak up so he did.

"Hey bro."

Karkat only grunted. Gamzee outstretched his arms across the table to touch his friend's arms. When he did he was pushed away. "Don't fucking touch me Gamzee." Karkat's shouts were muffled.

Gamzee pulled back and just watched his friend in that same position, even when the bell rang. When it was obvious Karkat wasn't moving from his spot, John and Dave got up to leave. Terezi had to be pulled away from her seat by Dave.

Other than a few stragglers, Gamzee and Karkat were the only two left in the cafeteria. Karkat looked up from his arms slowly, eyes bloodshot and puffy. He sighed quite audibly when he saw Gamzee.

"Gamzee why are you still here? You're going to be late."

"So are you Karbro, but I don't care if I am late. Why are _you_ still here? " Gamzee jabbed a skinny finger at him.

Karkat lifted his head more and wiped off his face with his jacket sleeves. "I-I can't go to class like this," he sniffled, "it's too embarrassing."

"Why is it embarrassing man?"

"Look at me Gamzee! I'm all teary-eyed and- and-"

"Broken?"

Karkat held his head in his hands, covering his eyes, and his lower lip began to quiver slightly before steadying itself again. "Yeah…"

"Who the fuck broke you man?"

"Uh. No one. Never mind Gamzee, let's just go."

Gamzee walked his friend to class before heading to his own class. He had never seen his friend like this before. He would have to keep a close eye on him from now on.

**-Follow Karkat-**

The bullying was getting worse, and so were his sleeping habits. When he managed to fall asleep he would have horrible dreams and end up being worse off than if he hadn't slept at all. Karkat was developing all kinds of scars, physical; both from others and from himself, emotional and mental ones too. He wasn't "cutting" and he never saw himself as "emotionally distressed". He just…hit walls sometimes. Sometimes hard enough to make his knuckles sore for weeks. Sometime hard enough to make the bleed and he'd have to show up to school in bandages. He never told anyone that he did it to himself, except for Gamzee. For some reason Karkat trusted the odd clown boy.

Karkat was headed to his next class when he passed the juggalo. All he said to him was 'Hey'. Not 'Hey muthafucka' how's it going?' just, 'Hey.' Gamzee seemed so out of sorts today. He didn't sit at the table this morning and his goofy grin was replaced by a terrifyingly dark look. Almost like if someone said the wrong thing to him, he would bash in their head with a club.

Karkat continued to look at his usually goofy friend as he walked, when he finally turned back towards the direction he was walking in, Karkat ran into the same jerk who had tripped him in the cafeteria.

"Out of my way, freak!" Karkat was shoved into the lockers as the brute passed him.

"I WASN'T EVEN IN YOUR WAY YOU BRAINLESS MEAT SACK!" He shouted in response. Karkat _had_ been in his way but he just got so infuriated by his slurs that he had to say something back! Karkat had been triggered and in return he triggered the boy right back. In moments, he grabbed Karkat's collar aggressively "What did you just call me you little shit?"

"DID I FUCKING STUTTER? MAYBE YOU SHOULD CLEAN OUT YOUR WAX FILLED HEARING CAVES ONCE IN AWHILE! LET GO OF ME!" sure Karkat sounded kind of tough, and yeah he had adrenaline coursing through him, but he was scared out of his mind. He didn't want to fight anyone, much less this hulking beast of a boy.

The upperclassman threw Karkat's smaller body against the lockers and punched him in the stomach, causing him to cough and spit. Karkat began to cry from the pain and as the onslaught continued his vision began to blur. He slumped to the floor and through his tears he could see the assailant's foot pull back, ready to kick his bruising body. So he braced himself.

But the kick never came. Karkat opened his eyes to see his abuser being thrown into the lockers across the hall. The surrounding crowd sounded surprised and a bit scared too.

"W-what the fuck?" the assaulter shrieked in confusion.

The silhouette of Karkat's savior crept towards the goon forebodingly.

**WHOOPS CLIFFHANGER?  
**yeah sorry guys :3 thanks for reading!


	7. Chapter 7

**Hey so this one is REEEALLLY short sorry :'I**

**Homestuck is Hussie's bluh bluh you know the deal ;P**

"Hey muthafucka' why don't you pick on someone your own size?" the other man growled.

Karkat's eyes grew wide when he realized who had just saved him. It was Gamzee.

The aggressor decided to lunge at Gamzee, aiming for his mid-section so he could bring him down easily. Gamzee had no problems with dodging him, grabbing his jacket and forcing him to run into the lockers, right next to Karkat, causing him to scoot away quickly. The other boy staggered up and went for Gamzee again, but Gamzee went first, he was much faster than the other boy, and tackled him to the floor. 'WHERE THE FUCK IS THE SECURITY?!' was the only thing Karkat could think. He was so scared he thought he was going to puke- oh...nope never mind he really was going to puke.

Gamzee loomed over the quivering whelp underneath him, a ferocious grin glued to his face. He lifted one of his long legs and stomped repeatedly on the poor kid's leg until he heard a sickening snap. Gamzee started laughing and cackling like he had lost every ounce of sanity he might have had before. The deranged clown kid had honked a bit between laughs as well. He went for his other leg. Karkat knew he had to stop this "GAMZEE NO!" He just didn't know how he was going to do it. He rushed to get up and get to his friend. "GAMZEE!" Karkat managed to stagger surprisingly quickly over to his fuming friend and papped him. Well…okay it was more of a slap but nevertheless it seemed to calm Gamzee down. His attention was now on Karkat, who had ceased his "paps" and had his hands gripping to Gamzee's face to keep him from looking at the victim of the clown's anger, while shooshing him.

The onlookers had stopped cheering and yelling a while ago but Karkat just realized the silence from the teens, 'Yeah I hope you all enjoyed yourselves assholes!' And finally, the security managed to break the wall of students and detain Gamzee who was now calm and a bit out of it. Karkat slumped to the floor and wiped his face with his sweater sleeves. He didn't know what to do or what to think. He just wanted to go home, this was too much excitement for him. So, after filing a statement on what he saw, he did just that, he managed to get a ride from one of the officers and went home.

**YUuuup. Sorry it took me forever and a day to post more. I wish I could come up with a good excuse but...honestly I'm just lazy. :T**

**I'll try to post the next one real soon but first I need to...ponder what should happen next.**  
**Thanks for reading anyhow guys! :33**


	8. Chapter 8

**gUYS IM REALLY SORRY IN ADVANCE FOR THIS. but uh. really sad chapter here. This song goes well with this chapter and especially near the end where its actually sung. i dunno WHY youd want to subject yourself to this sadness but here have a link:**

watch?v=V9UsDl5gSuo

**Hussie owns all of Homestuck and the Characters.**

Karkat slowly made his way up to the door of his apartment, fumbling with the keys before finally unlocking the door. Upon entering the living space he saw his brother hunched over on the couch, hearing the all too evident sounds of sobbing.

"Kankri...?" Karkat quietly closed the door, a look of worry flashing across his face.

The elder brother looked over to the door, the torrent of tears increasing. Karkat rushed to his brother's side noticing the letter firmly grasped in his hand, slightly crumpled and wet from his tears. Karkat pulled the letter gingerly from his brother's wavering grasp and smoothed it out, eyes dancing across the page. The scrolling of his eyes growing slower, his hands shaky and breaths uneven. Every word screaming out of the paper, lashing cruelly at his mind. Any semblance of control he had was lost, the gut-wrenching sobs finally escaping his trembling lips as wave after wave of bitter sorrow trickled down his cheeks.

The letter was from one of his father's friends who frequently accompanied him on missions. The contents of the letter informing that one Mr. Vantas had been found after a week of desperate searching, shackled to a post and exposed to the sun. The letter was professional; worded in a dense prose so as to convey as little of the writer's emotions as possible, though it was obvious by the wavering penmanship that whomever wrote it was taking this no better than Karkat. What little Karkat was able to glean from the letter in his current emotional state was that his father had been captured and tortured for God-knows-how-long, before finally being put out of his misery.

The message continued to play in his mind, repeating itself over and over, his pain and anger sharpening his thoughts to a razor-fine edge, if but for a moment.

_Why did people have to be so malicious? So cruel!? The entire point of my father's pilgrimage was to spread his peaceful teachings! Simply because he was different—in beliefs and in body—they shackled and tortured him! He committed no grave injustice! A righteous man such as him did not deserve such scorn, such outright hate! He tried to lead them to a brighter future and what did he get out of it? He got murdered, that's what!_

That was when it really hit Karkat, his father was gone. _He wasn't coming home_ for Christmas. _No more_ Sunday Skype calls.

_He was gone_ and there was nothing he could do about it.

Karkat collapsed to his knees, staring through the misty veil at the palms resting on his knees, giving a bitter laugh at how incredibly empty they looked. He was beyond the point of sobs, simply staring down at his lonely hands as the tears dripped freely onto his jeans. Kankri slid across the floor towards Karkat, slowly wrapping his arms around him. Karkat returned the gesture, wrapping his arms tightly around Kankri's waist, desperate for something—anything— that validated he was still alive. He sure didn't feel like it. He couldn't feel much of anything. They sat in silence for what felt like eternity, neither one daring to shatter the delicate thread on which they currently walked. They held each other as tight as their muscles would allow, futilely attempting to replace that which was lost. Both of them knew it was an empty gesture.

After hours of sitting in his brother's arms, Karkat was finally drained. He sat—unthinking—at nothing in particular, an errant bundle of red sweater cupped to his face like an infant. His brother's head was resting on top of his, matching his own in terms of facial expression. They were both awake and neither even bothered to try and sleep. Karkat simply rubbing his thumb over the bunched up sweater in his grasp. He couldn't do much else, neither could.

== FOLLOW TEREZI

It had been an entire week since Terezi had heard from Karkat. She was worried, to say the least. She knew he had been having issues with people, and was desperately hoping he was okay. Before heading to school she made some time to message him.

**Gallows Calibrator [GC] began pestering Carcino Geneticist [CG]**

GC: K4RK4T?

GC: K4RK4T 4R3 YOU OK4Y? 1 H4V3NT H34RD FROM YOU 4LL W33K!

GC: PL34S3 R3SPOND. 1M WORR13D!

CG: IM SORRY

Terezi waited for a snarky response, which would assure her that he was okay. But there was nothing.

GC: K4RK4T WH4T H4PP3N3D?

**Carcino Geneticist [CG] ceased pestering Gallows Calibrator [GC]**

_What? Did he lose connection? _

Karkat wasn't usually like this and Terezi was even more worried about him. She wished he would just tell her what's wrong, maybe Gamzee knows…

**Gallows Calibrator [GC] began pestering Terminally Capricious [TC]**

GC: H3Y G4MZ33

TC: SuP SiS

GC: DO YOU KNOW WH4TS GO1NG ON W1TH K4RK4T

GC: S1NC3 YOU TWO 4R3 SO CLOS3

TC: YuP

…

GC: W3LL?

TC: WeLl WhAt

GC: :I

GC: WH4TS GO1NG ON?!

TC: I cAnT aLl Up AnD tElL yOu ThAt MuThAfUcKa

TC: BuT hE sAyS hEs GuNnA fInIsH uP tHe ScHoOl YeAr At HoMe :o(

GC: WH4T!

TC: YeAh BuT hEs CoMiN bAcK nExT yEaR

GC: 1 GU3SS TH4TS GOOD. OK4Y TH3NKS G4M

TC: No PrObLeM sIs :o)

**Gallows Calibrator [GC] ceased pestering Terminally Capricious [TC]**

This news didn't help Terezi at all, she still didn't know what was wrong with Karkat. At least she knew he was talking to someone. She would have preferred it to be her, but beggars can't be choosers. She'd have to keep pestering him just to make sure he was okay.

It had been about a week since the Vantas brothers got out of their beds. But today was a... _special _day; the day of the funeral. Karkat was clad in an all-black suit, matching that of his brother's. Their eyes were sunken and dark from the lack of sleep the two got the week prior.

All seemed silent to Karkat as he sat in his room looking at one of the pictures of his father. His brother lightly tapped his door before opening it.

"Brother? It's time to leave now." His quiet voice quivering in the deathly silence of the room.

Karkat simply nodded—a slow and fragile movement—and rose from his bedside, gingerly slipping the picture into a pocket. He shuffled out the door alongside his brother, his body felt so heavy he could barely pick up his feet. The two climbed into the black car and began the journey neither thought they would have to take this soon.

The sky was uncharacteristically dark and overcast, the air having a breeze in it that blew the leaves around whimsically. Oh how Karkat wished he could simply blow away from all of this like the leaves. The car eased up to their destination—a slow, lurching movement—and Kankri was the first to exit the vehicle. Karkat found he couldn't move, he thought if he didn't see the casket then that would mean his father wasn't dead. He knew this was but the dream of a fool.

"Karkat." His brother held out a hand for him.

"I know." He clutched the picture with one hand and grabbed his brother's with the other.

He used his brother for support as they shambled their way to the memorial service, about as much life in them as there was in their father. Karkat couldn't focus on anything being said through the whole thing, he just stared at his father's coffin the whole time, fighting back an onslaught of emotions. He was doing well—about as well as one can be in this situation—until he heard someone else break. It was a woman with a massive curl of unruly hair. She had collapsed to the ground—on her knees—and begun crying.

Karkat's heart went out to this woman, his carefully constructed wall began to break as well. He couldn't help but let a few whimpering noises escape as his lips quivered and eyes moistened.

_'No please. Don't.' _He didn't want to start crumbling too.

He knew that if he did his brother would too; they anchored each other and promised not to let the other fall today.

_'Distract yourself.' _He did just that.

With renewed gusto he gazed around the memorial service, he knew no one. There were two girls comforting the sobbing woman; one about Kankri's age and the other around his age. Shifting his gaze, his eyes landed on a tall mohawked man who had all the stoicism and confidence of a soldier. As Karkat continued to study him he noticed his cheeks were glistening... this man who looks as though he'd never cried a second in his life was in the same position as Karkat was; trying to keep his façade of strength.

The family next to him was one he _did _recognize. The Maryams, they were family friends—no—they were _family_. The mother of the family—Dolorosa—was a mother to all, and now the closest thing to a parent Karkat had. The daughters took after her well, Kanaya used to be Karkat's best friend, but they lost touch after elementary. Karkat didn't know Porrim that well but she served as an older sister to the boys.

Kanaya looked up to Karkat with kind eyes, _'I need you so much right now Kanaya…' even_ the voice in his mind faltered.

He didn't recognize any of the other faces in the crowd; he had never met them before and didn't know how they knew his father, but at this point in time he didn't really care. With a deep breath he seemed to regain his composure and looked back to the still corpse of his father, resting peacefully in its casket for the last time. The quiet droning of the priest had finished and the casket was closed, beginning its slow descent into the warm embrace of the Earth.

_And then it started._

The beautifully harmonic voices of the choir men.

"In articulo mortis caelitus mihi vires."

"Nearer my god to thee, Nearer to thee. E'en though it be a cross, that raiseth me."

"Deo adjuvante non timendum in perpetuum."

"There let the way appear, steps unto heaven, all that thou sendest, me is mercy given."

"Dirige nos domine ad augusta per angusta."

"Sic itur ad astra, excelsior."

"Still all my song shall be; nearer my God to thee. Nearer my God to thee. Nearer to thee."

With every inch the coffin was lowered, Karkat splintered a little more. His hand gripped his brother's like he was holding on for dear life, in many aspects he was. He let go of his brother and fell to the ground, making no attempt to catch himself as he balled up on the ground, wrapping his arms around himself as he brought his knees to his chest as tightly as his bones would let him. His pained wails rang out, but the choir didn't stop. Kankri fell within moments as well, forming a protective shield over his brother as he hugged him and wept right alongside.

The service ended and with it, Karkat's hopes of his father staying with him. He, Kankri, and the family of Maryams sat together on the floor. Karkat now sitting upright but still clutching his sides as if to hold himself together. He heard footsteps but didn't bother looking up.

"Excuse us. We were very close friends of your father... and we think you might like to have this."

He and Kankri looked up, it was the woman who collapsed into a fit earlier and the man with the mohawk. The man looked as if he was bracing the woman, and the woman was clutching some rugged looking robe. To anyone else it would've looked like a heap of rags, but Karkat knew those rags; _his father's cloak._ Yet again teary-eyed, Karkat was surprisingly the one to stand up. He moved his eyes to the woman who was crying quietly over the cloak.

"Leijon." The man gently pushed the woman forward.

She looked up to Karkat and chuckled sadly, "Heh, this is your father's. You know," she sniffled, "He was such an incredible man. And…I…" she started crying again.

She looked completely heartbroken as she handed him the cloak, a woman who had lost the love of her life. Karkat took it and hugged the woman tight, as he felt himself begin to cry he pulled away.

"Thank you ma'am. I really appreciate you giving us this." He wiped away his tears with a long-damp sleeve.

The man stepped forward, "We have his other belongings, we'll send them to you as soon as possible."

"Thank you." Karkat gave a slight appreciative nod to the man as he walked away.

After those two left, the others stood to leave as well.

"Boys if you don't mind... we'd like to stay with you tonight." Dolorosa requested, the softest of smiles on her face, and the subtlest brow furrow.

"We'd love that." Kankri answered.

The ride home was a quiet one, Karkat sitting next to Kanaya and comforting him the whole way. With her help, he got the best night's sleep—albeit a dreamless one—he had gotten in a long time.


End file.
